Valve-gear



(No Model.)

P-. JENNINGS.

VALVE GEAR.

Patented Mar. 10, 189 6.

15 Hv m Y .W. P UT .T. THE/J11. J E VT. h fiv h PE W H.

NlTE STATES PATENT OFFICE.

PETER JENNINGS, OF MENASHA, VISCONSIN.

VALVE-GEAR.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No 555,955, dated March 10,1896,

Application filed April 9, 1895. Serial No. 545,101. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, PETER JENNINGS, a citizen of the United States, anda resident of Menasha, in the county of lVinnebago and State of\Visconsin, have invented a new and useful Improvemcntin Valve-Gears, ofwhich the following is a specification.

My invention relates to a valve-gear for a reciprocating engine, and isadapted for application to both horizontal and vertical ones havingslide, piston, or oscillating valves, single or in pairs, which may beoperated by an eccentric or eccentrics; and its object is to provide asimple device for giving to said valves a quick opening and closingmovement, to shut off the admission of steam at an early point in thestroke of the piston, and to make said point easily changeable byadjusting the operating mechanism. I attain these objects by means ofthe devices and their arrangement as shown in the accompanying drawings,in which- Figure 1 is a side view of an engine-cylinder, partly insection, a portion of its bed, the slides, crank-shaft, and eccentricwith my improvement applied for operating the valve when the valve isupon the side of the cylinder, the left-hand steam-port being open andthe eccentric on its outward center. Fig. 2 is a side view of anengine-cylinder having the steam-ch est above it, the steam-chest andcylinder being in section and having a modified form of thevalve-operating device, both steam-ports being closed and the pistonnear the end of its stroke. Fig. 3 is an elevation showing part of anupright engine having the same form of valve-operating device as in Fig.2, but applied to an oscillating valve. Fig. 4 is an elevation of ahorizontal cylinder having still another form of the valve-gear appliedfor operating an oscillating valve. Figs. 5, 6, and 7 are details uponan enlarged scale, Fig. 5 being a plan of one of the stops used in themodification, Figs. 2 and Fig. 6 is an edge view of the same, and Fig. 7is a plan of one of the valve-operating cam-plates.

Similar letters and figures of reference indicate like parts in theseveral views.

A indicates the engine-bed; B B B 13, engine-cylinders; C O O C,valve-chests; D D D,piston-rods; E EE, engine-slides; F, crank-shaft; F,crank-shaft connection; G,

crank-wheel; ll, an eccentric; I, eccentricrods; J, eccentric-link; a a,steam-ports; I) Z), en gine-pistons; c c, valve-plates; (Z cl, eX-haust-ports; e c c c, valverods; ff, valveoperating cam-plates; g,cam-plate-operating rods; 7L, pivot-screw, upon which the cam platesoscillate; 2 cam-plate stops; jj, supporting-stands upon which thecamplates in Figs. 2 and 4 are pivoted and oscillate; 7t 7t 7t/t,valve-operating stop-holders; ll,'valveoperating stops; m,securing-screws for said stops and for the valve-plate stops; '12,adjusting-screws for the cam-operating stops; 0, the pivotal point ofthe valve-stop holders; 1), connections from the cam-plate rod 6, whichis connected with the link J and the rod g, which rod q is forconnecting with a governor; r 0" 7", rods connecting valve-stop holderswith the valve-rods, the stop-holder 7c in Fig. 1 being connecteddirectly with the valve-rod c; s, a lip upon the stop I; u, an arm fortransmitting the oscillating movement of the stop-holder it" to thevalve-rod e in Fig. 2, both the arm and stop-holder 70 being mounted foroscillation upon a shaft which is journaled above the ways E.

An eccentric upon the crankshaft operates the valve by giving anoscillating motion to a cam-plate, said cam-plate in its movement comingin contact with stops which are operatively connected with thevalve-rod. They may be of various forms for adapting them for engines ofdifferent construction, as is shown in Figs. 1 and 4 or Figs. 2 and 3,but the rule which governs the form of said plates appliesv to all. Itis best shown in Fig. 7 the cam being divided into sixteen equal sectorsand four of those sectors being subdivided, arcs and circles being drawnat determined distances apart, according to the width of the steamportsand lap of the valve, for determining the form of the curves upon theedges of the camplate and thereby opening and closing the valve asdesired. The heavy lines in Fig. '7 show the form of the cams.

The cam-plate in Fig. 7 is a representative of the principle upon whichall of the several modifications are made, and is provided. upon itsopposite edges with cams of peculiar form, which by engaging wit-h stopsattached to suitable holders communicate an irregular movement to thevalve, as follows: That portion of the cam between lines 1 and 2 closesthe valve immediately after the eccentric passes its center. The spacefrom 2 to 3 moves the valve very slowly until the exhaust-port is closedand the opposite steam-port is opened to the exhaust, from 3 to 4 itmoves the valve to the point of opening the opposite port for theadmission of steam, and from 4 to 5 moves it until the valve is wideopen, or as much as may be needed for the work in hand.

By means of the mechanism described steam can be used expansively fornearly three-fourths of the stroke of the piston and with thesteam-ports fully opened at some point during the throw of the valve.

The movement of the valve may be made variable by introducing a link andconnecting it wit-h a governor between the eccentric and cam-plate, orby means of a shaft-governor, the link with rod q for connecting with agovernor being shown in Fig. l. The throw of the valve may thus beshortened and the admission of steam contracted so as to cut off at anyfraction of the valve-opening necessary.

All of the cam-plates are to be formed upon the same system, althoughthey may differ in form, or operate the valve by engaging differentportions of its edge with stops from the one in Fig. 1.

The stop-holders 70' 7t may be arranged to slide, as in Fig. 1, or tooscillate upon a pivot, as in Figs. 2, 3 and 4, the pivotal point forthe same being located as its particular application may require.

The valve-operatin g stops Z Z Z Z are made adjustable upon theirholders by means of ad justing-screws n and are secured in position withbolts m.

The valve-operatin g stops Z are formed with a projecting lip s. As theeccentric approaches the end of its stroke the lip t of the cam-platewill engage the end of the main part of the stop Z at one end of thestop-holder, (said main part being indicated by dotted lines in Fig. 5,)while the stop upon the other end of the holder will swing into theposition shown by left-hand stop in Fig. 2, but without coming incontact with it until the direction of the cam-plates motion isreversed, when the lip s will engage with the cam-plate stop iand causea rapid movement of the valve, much more rapid than the cams engagementwiththe stops upon holders 7a or 70 would produce without the stops 1'and lip s.

The stop-holder in Fig. 2 is to be mounted upon a rock-shaft above theslides E, and in Figs. 1, 3, and 4 may be attached to any convenientpart of the engine or its frame.

Having described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secure byLetters Patent, 1s-

1. In a valve-gear, the combination with the Valve and eccentric-rod, ofan oscillating plate having cams projecting outwardly from the edge, orborder thereof, said plate being ar ranged for oscillation between rightand left stops which are adj ustably secured upon a movable holder, thefaces of said cams being adapted for engaging the stops and therebygiving to the valve the movement specified for supplying and cutting offsteam and allowing the engine to work from the expansion of said steam,substantially as described.

2. In a valve gear, the combination with the valve and eccentric-rod, ofa plate mounted for oscillation between the eccentric and valve-rod,said plate having cams upon the opposite outer edges thereof, stops forengaging said outer edges adj ustably arranged upon a suitable holder,said holder being mounted for movement in a line parallel with the lineof oscillation of said cam-plate and being arranged for transmitting theaction of the cams of the plate upon said stops to the valve, and

thereby giving to the valve the movementspecified for supplying andcutting off steam and allowing the engine to work expansively,substantially as set forth.

3. In a valve-gear, the combination with the valve and eccentric-rod, ofa plate mounted for oscillation between the eccentric and valve-rod,said plate having cams upon the opposite outer edges thereof, stops forengagin g said outer edges adj ustably arranged upon a suitable holder,said holder being mounted for oscillation in a line parallel with theline of oscillation of said cam-plate and being ar ranged fortransmitting the action of the cams of the plate upon said stops to thevalve, and thereby giving to the valve the movement specified forsupplying and cutting off steam and allowing the engine to workexpansively, substantially as described.

4. In a valve-gear, the combination with the valve and eccentric-rods,of an oscillating plate having cams upon opposite edges thereof andstops upon the face of said plate, stops arranged in the path of saidplates oscillation for engaging said cams, said last-named stops beingprovided with a lip s for engaging the aforesaid stops upon thecam-plate, the cams of said plate and its engaging-stops being so shapedand arranged as to give the valve the movements specified for supplyingand cutting off the steam, and the stops upon the camplate and lips s,so shaped and arranged as to produce a quicker opening movement of thesteam-ports than the cams and their aforesaid engaging stops,substantially as described.

PETER JENNINGS. lVitnesses:

CARL KooH,

EDMUND LIEBHAUSER.

